It's no secret that wins have been hard to
come by for the Sharks this season. So it was a breath of fresh air to see them
pound an opponent for once. Make that opponent the Los Angeles Kings and it was
like Christmas in November. San Jose erupted for 5 goals in the 3rd period to
beat the Kings 7-2 at SAP Center on Monday. It was the second win in three
tries over the Kings for the Sharks, but it was an opportunity to win a game by
a healthy margin for the first time this season. The Sharks were led by the
youngsters, including Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and Yaroslav
Askarov.
The Sharks blew a 3-goal lead on opening night to the St Louis
Blues, but in this one, they snapped a 2-2 tie in the final period, fueled by
Celebrini who had a pair of goals in the final period.
That was 18
year-old Celebrini who undressed the Kings. Smith along with William Eklund
playedkey roles, adding 2 assists each.
Askarov allowed a pair of goals
in a rough 2nd period, but othewise snuffed out the Kings offensive threats.
Nico Sturm made the most of his return from the injured reserve when
he scored 1:47 into the game. The German forward cashed in on a breakaway
chance after Mario Ferraro led him with a feed up ice from the end boards.
Sturm collected Ferraro's pass at the Kings blueline, then beat Kings
goaltender David Rittich to the stick side.
Luke Kunin raced up ice on
a breakaway on the next shift, but his attempt sailed over the crossbar.
Kevin Fiala elected to punch Ty Dellandrea in the back of the head
with 13 seconds remaining in the period, which carried over to the 2nd period.
The Sharks found it difficult just to gain the Kings zone on the power play.
They would not convert for the 2nd time in the game.
Brandt Clarke
tied the game a minute after Fiala's penalty expired. The young Kings
defenseman gathered an Adrian Kempe feed as he cut across the slot at an angle
then pulled a shot back that beat Yaroslav Askarov over the glove hand.
The Kings grabbed the lead at 8:58 after forcing the puck to the goal
mouth. Kempe took two hacks at the puck with Askarov sitting on the ice with
his pads spread wide. Anze Kopitar slid in near the left post and swept home a
rebound for his 6th of the season and a 2-1 lead.
Fabian Zetterlund
helped San Jose re-tie the game at 13:59, utilizing a little puck luck along
the way. The Swedish forward raced around the back of the Kings net from right
to left that tried to slide the puck to the front of the net, but it hi Mikey
Anderson and deflected past Rittich. The goal was Zetterlund's 9th of the
season, which leads the team.
The Sharks blitzed the Kings early in
the 3rd period to break the 2-2 deadlock.
Celebrini started things off
by racing up the left wing and looking right with a head fake before firing a
shot that beat Rittich for his 5th goal of the season.
Defenseman Timothy Liljegren made it a 4-2 Sharks
lead a minute later. The defenseman fired a shot form the top of the right
circle that weaved through traffic before finding twine. The Kings challenged
the play citing goaltender interference after Mario Ferraro skated through the
Kings crease.
After review the challenge was deemed unsuccessful and
the Kings were assessed a delay of game penalty. Warren Foegele was then set
off for tripping 20 seconds later to setup a 5-on-3 power play for San Jose.
Celebrini cashed in on the 2-man advantage by ripping a one-timer from
the right circle at 3:43 to make it a 5-2 game. William Eklund and Will Smith
were credited with the assists.
Fiala was sent off with a double minor
for slicing Zetterlund's mouth open with a high stick at 10:42. Alexander
Wennberg converted right off the faceoff, ripping a shot from the high slot for
this 6th goal of the season and the 2nd power play goal for San Jose in the
contest.
Luke Kunin added his 5th goal of the season for good measure
with 1:21 remaining in regulation. The Sharks forward intercepted a puck in the
Kings zone then skated in on Rittich and roofed a shot for the Sharks 7th goal
of the night.
Game Notes: * Mikael Granlund was an
injury scratch after he suffered an upper body injury in the loss to the
Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. Granlund suffered a head injury and was forced in
to a concussion late in the game on Saturday.
* Nico Sturm was back in
the lineup after missing 5 games with an upper body injury. Jack Thompson was
assigned to the San Jose Barracuda earlier in the day to make room for Sturm.
* Yaroslav Askarov earned the secondary assist on Nico Sturm's 1st
period goal for his first NHL point. That's the second point by a goaltender
for SJ this season. Vitek Vanecek had an assist on November 5th against
Columbus.
* The youth movement played a big role in the Sharks win.
Macklin Celebrini had 2 goals and an assist, Will Smith had 2 assists, and
William Eklund added 2 assists.
* Yaroslav Askerov recorded his first
win as a Shark. His final line was 22 saves on 24 shots, allowing the 2 Kings
goals in a 13 shot 2nd perod. He was aided by his team's offensive outburst in
the 3rd period, which included keeping the puck away from the Sharks net. The
Kings would only generate 5 shots in that crucial 3rd period.
